Veneto, Italy
Carefully selected grape bunches are hand-harvested in Bertani’s best Valpolicella vineyards in Fumane, Marano and the Novare Valley. Unlike most leading Amarone producers, who buy grapes from outside growers, Bertani’s harvest originates entirely in the firm’s own vineyards. With marly-calcareous soil sheltered by surrounding woodland, these vineyards offer the ideal terroir for nurturing the quality of grapes necessary for producing a world-class Amarone.

Tasting notes

The wine has a deep, dark garnet colour. The classical cherry flavours of Amarone are immediately perceptible to the nose, with the preponderant notes of Marasca and sour cherry. The wine presents a great variety of characters, from fresh fruit to jamlike tones, which offer a very harmonious aftertaste, alternating with spicy elements.
The ample nose has a sweet impact and spreads in a continuous chain of sensations. The wine opens up in the mouth with aftertastes of all the red-berry fruits, besides vanilla on soft, heavy-duty cloth.

Rating

Wine Advocate 94 points (Feb 2012)The 2004 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico is flat-out gorgeous. Why can?t all the Bertani wines be this good? The 2004 is a superb, elegant Amarone graced with expressive dark red fruit, flowers, tobacco and spices, all supported by finessed, silky tannins. Sweet roses, tar and licorice are woven into the layered, sublime finish. Deceptively medium in body, the 2004 has the stuffing to age well for decades. This is a terrific showing from Bertani. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2034.

Wine maker notes

Harvest begins in early October and extends over a two-week period. After harvest, ripe, unblemished grapes from the uppermost portions of each cluster -- those grapes richest in sugar and extracts -- are carefully detached and laid out to dry on cane mats. The mats are stored on raised platforms in airy lofts, sheltered by a roof but otherwise exposed to drying breezes on all sides. By the time they are ready to undergo maceration and fermentation in February, they will have lost up to 60% of their water content. A lengthy maceration period ensues, a factor responsible for Amarone’s tremendous body and structure. After a controlled fermentation, the wine is transferred into oak casks for a period of 5-8 years during which it is racked twice annually prior to bottling.
AGING
5-8 years in Slavonian oak casks, plus one year in bottle prior to release.